Category: 2. Middle East

US President Donald Trump on Sunday urged Iran and Israel — who are locked in an exchange of military strikes — to “make a deal,” but suggested they might need to “fight it out” first.

“I think it’s time for a deal,” Trump told reporters, as Israel and Iran exchanged a fresh barrage of missile strikes and threatened more devastation in a conflict that appeared to be intensifying.

“But sometimes they have to fight it out, but we’re going to see what happens,” Trump said, speaking at the…

US President Donald Trump vetoed an Israeli plan to assassinate Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a senior US official told AFP Sunday.

“We found out that the Israelis had plans to hit Iran’s supreme leader. President Trump was against it and we told the Israelis not to,” said the US official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Earlier Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dodged a question about reports that Trump had asked his country not to kill Khamenei.

“I’m not…

Tens of thousands of people dressed in red marched through the streets of The Hague Sunday to demand more action from the Dutch government against what they termed a “genocide” in Gaza.

Rights groups such as Amnesty International and Oxfam organised the demonstration through the city to the International Court of Justice, creating a so-called “red line”.

With many waving Palestinian flags and some chanting “Stop the Genocide”, the demonstrators turned a central park in the city into a sea of…

Tens of thousands of people dressed in red marched through the streets of The Hague and in Brussels on Sunday to demand more action from their governments against what they termed a “genocide” in Gaza.

In France on Saturday, thousands of other people joined similar protests, as part of a weekend mobilisation around the world against the Israeli offensive in the Palestinian territory.

Some 150,000 people participated in the march in the Hague, according to organisers.

In Brussels, where…

Dozens of Palestinians killed or wounded while waiting for flour aid in northwest Gaza, on 14 June 2025 [Mohammed Asad/Middle East Monitor]

Dozens of Palestinians killed or wounded while waiting for flour aid in northwest Gaza, on 14 June 2025 [Mohammed Asad/Middle East Monitor]

Dozens of Palestinians killed or wounded while waiting for flour aid in northwest Gaza, on 14 June 2025 [Mohammed Asad/Middle East Monitor]

At least…

Israel’s unprecedented strikes on Iran, which have killed top military leaders and nuclear scientists, required years of meticulous intelligence gathering and infiltration, experts say.

Israel said it hit hundreds of targets on Friday alone, and has since continued its attacks, striking a defence facility and fuel depots on Sunday.

The fiercest-ever exchange of fire between the arch foes came in the midst of ongoing talks between Tehran and Washington seeking to reach a deal on Iran’s nuclear…

US President Donald Trump said Sunday that Israel and Iran will have peace “soon” and that many meetings are taking place to achieve this, Anadolu reports.

“Iran and Israel should make a deal, and will make a deal,” Trump said on Truth Social.

His remarks came as Israel and Iran exchanged new rounds of attacks on Sunday. The conflict began early Friday when Israel attacked Iranian military and nuclear facilities, and killed many of its top commanders and…

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Sunday that Iran must never be allowed to possess nuclear weapons, as he spoke to Sultan Haitham bin Tariq bin Taimur Al Said of Oman over the phone, his office said, Anadolu reports.

Merz and Sultan Haitham agreed that the immediate priority is to prevent the escalation of conflict between Israel and Iran.

The two leaders reiterated their readiness to support diplomatic efforts aimed at ending the hostilities.

Merz also…

Iran arrested on Sunday two people on suspicion of spying for Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, local media said, Anadolu reports.

The state news agency IRNA, citing police, said the pair were arrested in a house in Savojbolagh County in the northern Alborz province.

The broadcaster said the two suspects used their hideout to produce bombs, explosive materials, booby traps, and electronic equipment.

Israel launched coordinated airstrikes on multiple sites…

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Sunday that Germany, along with the UK and France, is ready to begin immediate negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program in an effort to ease tensions in the Middle East, Anadolu reports.

“Germany, together with France and Britain, are ready. We’re offering Iran immediate negotiations about the nuclear program, I hope (the offer) is accepted,” Wadephul told public broadcaster ARD.

He said such negotiations…